Although medical science often yields innovation through long years of hard work and study, you might be surprised to find out that some of today’s most-used medications and medical technologies were actually discovered by accident. From treadmills to Viagra, some accidents provide happy endings. Below is a list of nine medical discoveries that happened through chance:
1. The Treadmill
The treadmill gets its name from its original purpose: to punish prisoners by making them tread on a wheel that was used to mill grain. Although initially designed for torture, the treadmill was soon found to be a device that could provide hours of exercise for a large portion of the body, allowing for users to shed pounds fast. The first commercially available treadmill was introduced in the 1960s and has formed a love/hate relationship with gym members across the world.
2. Anesthesia
The idea of undergoing surgery today without the benefit of anesthesia is unthinkable to most people, but in the past, surgery was often carried out with only a bottle of whisky to drink and a bullet to bite down on to handle the pain. Thankfully, modern medical technology provides surgeons with advanced anesthetics to essentially knock a patient out prior to undergoing surgery. While modern methods of anesthesia are far advanced compared to those of the past, the discovery of primitive anesthesia was an accident.
A handful of doctors discovered, by accident, that they could create a sedative effect on surgical patients by combining ether with nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas. This combination yielded results that kept a patient alive while not conscious enough to feel pain or even experience the moment. From there, medical scientists have improved upon the chemicals used in anesthesia as well as administration controls and monitoring techniques and equipment.
3. Artificial Sweeteners
From coffee to soda, most people enjoy some sugar in their drinks, but too much sugar can lead to health problems. Sugar consumption has been linked to the development of things like diabetes, but it can also be bad for the heart. Thankfully, today, artificial sweeteners exist … but they were discovered by accident.
Independently, three different scientists found out that there were safer alternatives to sugar due to poor handwashing routines. One licked his finger in order to turn the page of a book after handling aspartame. Another found out that saccharin tasted sweet on a piece of bread he was eating after not washing his hands. Finally, the third scientist misread the label on a testing jar to read ‘tasting jar’, leading to the development of what is now known as Splenda.
4. X-Rays
If you break a bone, have a tooth cavity, or a variety of additional internal problems, you’re likely to wind up needing to undergo x-rays. Images from x-ray technology can help medical professionals to diagnose a wide amount of conditions, and although most people consider x-rays to be fairly standard medical procedures today, this technology was discovered by accident.
Using cathodes and cardboard, a physicist discovered that images shone brightly, even in the dark. This eventually led to the discovery of modern x-rays, providing not only medical personnel with the ability to see more clearly, but also law enforcement agencies and others.
5. Penicillin
Virtually everyone has had to take an antibiotic before, but did you know that such a cure was based on a total accident? Penicillin, one of the earliest antibiotics, was developed when a Scottish researcher, who had a dirty lab, found that mold growing in a petri dish had killed off harmful bacteria.
From there, various antibiotics were developed using similar tactics in pharmacology, allowing treatment options for infections that would have been considered fatal in the past. Today, penicillin is still considered to be a standby for infections, but its contribution to modern medical science goes down in history as one of the greatest.
6. Warfarin
Rodents are an issue for most people at some point or another, and warfarin has been the solution to countless homeowners when combating rats and mice. The strange thing is that warfarin is considered a highly effective blood thinner these days.
Warfarin was initially developed after a rancher noticed his cattle were bleeding to death after minor injuries. This was determined to be because the cattle were feeding off of a particular clover that thinned the blood. After all of the pieces were put together, Warfarin was developed for medical use to thin the blood of those who had suffered or who were at risk of a heart attack or stroke.
7. The Pacemaker
Pacemakers have saved countless lives since their existence, and they have also provided a second chance for people around the world. A pacemaker works by sending an electrical signal to the heart to regulate its beat. This, in turn, cuts down on heart attacks and other cardio concerns. These devices are fairly easy to install and require little maintenance, making them a fantastic alternative to open-heart surgery.
The pacemaker was initially being researched by a Swiss doctor who was studying the effects of cooling on the human heart. This doctor came to realize that a stopped heart could be restarted using artificial power for a short time. With this knowledge and study, he created what is now known as the pacemaker, a device that can deliver regular electrical signals to the heart in order to increase its efficiency, health, and effectiveness.
8. The Smoke Detector
Smoke detectors are often things people take for granted … until they either start to chirp due to low batteries or until they save a life. Interestingly enough, the smoke detector was created by chance when a Swiss researcher who was trying to create a poison sensor smoked a cigarette in his lab after becoming frustrated with the results of his experiments. From there, the ionization part of his sensor began to react, leading to today’s modern smoke detector.
9. Viagra
Although erectile dysfunction was once considered taboo to discuss, the 1990s saw a surge in discussion largely due to the development of Viagra. Viagra was initially discovered as researchers were trying to find treatments for heart disease. Although sildenafil, otherwise known as Viagra, was not successful in its initial task, it led researchers to realize that the medication caused erections in men afflicted with erectile dysfunction.
So, even though Viagra started out with a completely different purpose, it became the go-to medication for men across the world who were experiencing the effects of erectile dysfunction. Today, Viagra is regarded as one of the top drugs when it comes to treating sexual health concerns, and many men and their partners have benefits greatly from this happy accident.
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Andrew Rusnak is an author who writes on topics that include sexual health and medical technology.
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